Posted Dec. 22, 2020.
Dear UUCF Community,
As you read earlier in a letter from Board President Mark Magee, the UUCF Board of Directors has set a full agenda for the 2020-21 congregational year and has established subcommittees to accomplish its work. The Anti-Racism Subcommittee is exploring ways we as a congregation can decenter whiteness within our structure and traditions, thus, moving us toward our goal of being a truly diverse and welcoming congregation.
Throughout this congregational year the board will be reading “Widening the Circle of Concern: Report of the UUA Commission on Institutional Change,” published in June 2020 by the Unitarian Universalist Association’s (UUA) Commission on Institutional Change. The commission was charged by the UUA Board of Trustees to conduct an audit of power structures and analyze systemic racism and white supremacy culture within the UUA. The report also makes recommendations to congregations and concludes that in spite of the promise of our movement, we still need to address the biases and oppression within our systems to build resilience in our living tradition for the times we are in and strengthen it for future generations. To that end through a series of meetings, the subcommittee will discuss sections of the book and possible action items for the board. These ideas will be presented at different board meetings, with opportunities for input from the rest of the board. By the end of this congregational year, the board’s goal is to have a list of action items for next year.
To deepen our individual understanding of systemic racism, board members have chosen books to read for our own education and edification in hopes this will deepen our ability to wisely lead this important work in our beloved community. Here is the list of books/workbooks that have been chosen:
- “Why We Can’t Wait” by Martin Luther King, Jr.
- “Stamped from the Beginning” and “How to Be an Antiracist” by Ibram X. Kendi
- “I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness” by Austin Channing Brown
- “Racism Without Racists: Color-Blind Racism and the Persistence of Racial Inequality in America” by Eduardo Bonilla-Silva
- “Me and White Supremacy” by Layla Saad
- “Caste” by Isabel Wilkerson
- “So You Want to Talk About Race” by Ijeoma Oluo
Below is a list of resources we found helpful as we chose our books. We hope you will join us and also choose a book to read to deepen your own knowledge and understanding of systemic racism.
The Board of Directors Anti-Racism Subcommittee
Lydia Lewis, chair
Susan Bennett
Darryl Branting
Kaye Cook
Additional Resources
- Fairfax County Public Library anti-racist reading list #1
- Harvard reading list on issues of race
- Dismantling Racism: A Book List for White Readers
- Business Insider: 22 books on racism and white privilege